Accuracy: Every singer must consistently sing the right pitch at the right time. Musicianship, the mechanics of music making, must be solid for every singer, every note, every word, and every syllable.

Phrasing: The chorus must sing every note, syllable, and word musically and expressively. We will consistently strive for musical and expressive performances. These qualities transform mechanics into true musical art.

Diction: The chorus must sing the text in a manner that is understandable. Solid diction takes full advantage of the entire color spectrum of the language. Without effective delivery of text, the audience would rather hear an instrumental ensemble.

Personal Communication: Songs project and communicate a direct message. Singers must deliver the emotion and drama of a song in a manner that realizes the song’s full potential to affect the listeners. This communication moves directly from the hearts and minds of the singers to the hearts and minds of the listeners. Although it is the responsibility of every singer in the ensemble, this communication will happen only if the conductor leads by example, consistently teaches it, inspires the singers to do it, and accepts nothing less.

Grading:
The grading for this class is objectively based. That means that the homework involved is vital to passing choir. Homework will be assigned as needed. You will be told in advance how much the homework will be worth. Basically, if you show up, do your work, and try everyday in class you will get an exceptional grade.

Attendance:
Attendance is vital to your choir career. We need your voice there! You must be in class the week of the performance. We need you more than ever then!

Lessons:
Each week you will have a lesson. This will make up 25 points per lesson. You will have an assignment to complete for your lesson and that must be completed on the day of your lesson. Point values will vary depending on how well you perform in the lesson.

Concert Write-Ups 50 points per report:
(Points taken on the semester grade only) = 100pts
Concerts: once a quarter for 100 points = 100 pts

Explanation of Grading Categories:

I. Attendance:
As choir members, we rely on each member to make our music come to life. If members aren’t there, we are not a full choir. We need you there and more importantly, WANT you there. It is imperative that you attend as many class periods as possible. It is good for your own development, and for the development of the choir. Full points will be given to students who attend class, and are actively participating in the task at hand. When the bell rings, the door closes. If there is an emergency or a pre-existing condition that you are certain will cause you to be absent for a period of time, please contact me and I will be more than happy to help.

II. Lessons:
You are allotted at least one, twenty-minute lesson per week. These lessons are designed for you and me to get together and work on things that you are having trouble with. We will work one-on-one on vocal technique, parts in songs you personally are having difficulty with, and work with Solo and Ensemble music if you wish. Please make use of your agenda to write down when your lessons are and to get a pass. Make up lessons will only be scheduled in the slightest of circumstances. Full points will be distributed attendance, effort, and evidence of improvement heard in your lesson.

III. Concert Write-Ups:
Singing in a choir is different than watching a choir from the audience. Sometimes what we experience as a choir member is different than what the audience will experience when we perform. These concert write-ups are designed for you to be an observer of a choir, not of your own, and see what things that they do that you do or do not like and what you will or will not carry into your own choir experiences. It is a project of reflection and evaluation of both your own choir experiences as well as others.

Concert Write-Ups need to be turned in within a week of the performance. A program, as proof of your attendance, needs to accompany the essay. The essay is to be one page typed, or two pages hand-written. More details about this assignment will follow.

V. Concerts:
Concerts are our final examination for the quarter. They are worth 100 points per concert. You need to be there. In only the most extreme circumstances will you be excused and the points can be made up in another way. If you do not show up and it is not excused, you will receive and F for the quarter. We need you at the concert. We need your voice and your enthusiasm to create a great musical experience for you and the people of Pulaski. If you may have a problem with a concert date, please let me know ASAP.

Third Quarter

During third quarter you will be completing a music theory tutorial in the music computer lab. This will be completed mainly on your time (study hall, lunch, before and after school). The lab is open all school day and in the morning from 7 a.m. and after school until 4 p.m. If you have completed this coursework for another class, you will be given an advanced level of theory to complete. This work is worth 100 points and takes the place of any reflective lesson work. You will still be graded on attendance, part testing and the concert.

Writing Rubric
As part of a literacy initiative that is being put in place at PHS, we will not accept papers that do not have the following:

1. Capitalize the first letter of a sentence.
2. Write words out instead of using abbreviations.
3. Use proper end marks for sentences such as periods, question marks, exclamation points, etc.
4. If starting a sentence with a number as in mathematics, write out the word instead of using the number.

Music Replacement POLICY!
In order to better serve the choral students at Pulaski High School a policy has been enacted. All choral students will receive a folder number. All music issued to that student will correlate with that folder number. When music is collected after a concert, if a student’s number is missing, that student will owe the choral department the current replacement price of that music. This can be up to $2.00 per piece of music. If a folder is lost, the student owes the replacement cost of the contained music and the replacement cost of the folder. If the folder AND all the music is gone, it will cost the student $20.00 to replace. Please keep track of folders and all music contained therein. This policy also applies to solo and ensemble, madrigal and vocal jazz music.

Concert Attire
When we dress for a concert, we want to look professional and not take the audience’s attention from our voice and direct it to what we are wearing. Therefore, a series of guidelines have been made.

Women: Black dress pants or an ankle-length skirt, and a black top.
Men: Black dress pants and a black top.

The attire that you choose to wear has to be in conjunction with the school dress code.

Absolutely NO:
1. Skirts that are above the knee. Skirts need to be ankle length. Skirts that are between your knee and ankle are acceptable but not encouraged.
2. Sleeveless or low cut shirts. Need I say it? The less skin, the better. Short sleeves are acceptable, but not sleeveless.
3. Please stay away from ties. Again, we want to look unified.

Solo and Ensemble Rules

Concert Write-Ups
Singing in a choir is different than watching a choir from the audience. Sometimes what we experience as a choir member is different than what the audience will experience when we perform. These concert write-ups are designed for you to be an observer of a choir, not your own, and see what things that they do that you do or do not like and what you will or will not carry into your own choir experiences. It is a project of reflection and evaluation of both your own choir experiences as well as others.

1. DUE: One week after you observe the performance. Any papers submitted after one week of the performance date will not be accepted.

2. HOW MANY: 4 per year, 2 due per semester.

3. WHAT: Primarily vocal concerts. You may observe 1 band performance. You may NOT do a concert write-up on an ensemble that you participate in. Elementary, middle, any other high school, and especially college level choirs are accepted. I strongly encourage you to visit a college or another high school for their choir concert if possible. These have to be music performances; not school plays, or programs with recorded music. I realize that transportation may be a problem for some. If this is a problem, please speak to me and we’ll make arrangements. A program from the concert is to be handed in with the assignment.

4. LENGTH: One paged typed, two pages hand-written.

 *Depending on the severity of the disciplinary problem, Miss Danke reserves the right to skip steps to insure the safety and quality education that is given to the rest of the choir students.*